Fontaines D.C. have one of those intensely stereotypical, and borderline fairytale stories for their meeting; the 5 of them went to music college, bonded with each other over their love for poetry, and then 2 years later the group would release their internationally well-received debut Dogrel. Since then, the rest is history, they’ve not had a single moment away from the limelight. Where else is there to go? It turns out, the next logical step, try to make this fairytale story an option for someone else. From now on, the BIMM Institute in Dublin will offer full coverage of the course fees for a four-year duration for a student to complete a BA (Hons) Commercial Modern Music degree. Each year the band will be involved in a process to select one student, and cover their tuition fees (usually worth €12,000).
If you are the one lucky enough to be on the receiving end of the program, you could spend 4 years researching your chosen field, be it songwriting, drums, vocals or guitar, as well as background knowledge on the ins and out of the industry, business practices, masterclass opportunities, and countless opportunities to network and collaborate around the industry. Fontaines D.C. bassist Conor Deegan commented, “We’re honoured to have a scholarship in our name.” Adding, “Our time [at] BIMM gave us time to figure out who we wanted to be as a band. We were given guidance on how to achieve our dreams. We’re looking forward to being able to help someone else succeed at their time there with this scholarship.”
BIMM Institute Dublin’s principal Alan Cullivan had this to say about the new collaboration, “having watched their career grow with great excitement both before and since they completed their studies”. Adding, “At BIMM, we are driven by a commitment to helping Ireland’s next generation of music talent achieve their creative goals and realise their ambitions as artists… to be able to offer that in collaboration with our former students is a bonus.”
As well as all of this extra work trying to salvage what remains of music in the educational system this country has to offer, Fontaines D.C. are also in the midst of the build-up for their new album Skinty Fia. Set for release on April 20th, the album will follow up their 2020 album A Hero’s Death. Three singles have been released so far: “Jackie Down The Line”, “I Love You”, and the title track. You can pre-order the new album here, and take a listen to the lead single below.
